In this French grammar lesson, you will learn about être conjugation in the present tense.
In this lesson you will learn about:
- how être is conjugated in French
- how être is used in French
- how être is pronounced in French
- how être is used in sentences in French
- how you can quiz yourself on être conjugation in the present tense
- how to practice with flashcards for être conjugation
- how and why you should use the courses of Language Atlas to learn French
Please refer to the French A1 Curriculum to get a better overview of French grammar, if you are curious about this fits in French A1.
By the end of the lesson you will know all about être conjugation in the present tense!
Table of Contents
Être Conjugation in the Present Tense
| je | suis |
| tu | es |
| il/elle/on | est |
| nous | sommes |
| vous | êtes |
| ils/elles | sont |
Usage of Être
This section on être conjugation in the present tense will show you how être is used in French.
Être which means “to be” and is an irregular verb.
There are 4 general usages for the verb être in French.
- To present oneself
Je suis Mme Martin
I am Miss Martin
This is similar to how you use it in English.
- To state one’s nationality
Il est américain
He is American
Please note that nationalities in French are not capitalized unless they are used as a proper noun.
- To talk about your job/profession
Je suis avocat
I am a lawyer
In French, when you talk about your profession you don’t use an article before your profession.
- Describe a person or a thing
Vous êtes heureuse Mme Martin?
Are you happy Miss Martin?
Note that when we are in a formal situation or are speaking to someone that is older than us we generally use “vous“
Tu es triste Paul?
Are you sad Paul?
When we are in an informal situation or when we are speaking to someone our own age we generally use “tu“.
Pronunciation of Être
In this section on être conjugation in the present tense we will focus on pronunciation.
There are 2 important rules to take into account when we want to pronounce an être conjugation in the present tense.
- You do not pronounce the last -e in the subject pronoun “elle“. It is just the “ell” part that gets pronounced.
Elle est
She is
After the letter “l” you will go straight to the “e“.
You don’t pronounce the letter in red.
- If the first letter of the verb is a vowel or a silent “h“, then you must perform a liaison. This happens in the vous form. This means that the final “s” of vous will have a “z” sound.
Vous êtes
Please note how the final “s” of vous sounds like a “z”.
Example Sentences with an Être Conjugation in the Present Tense
The final section of this lesson on être conjugation in the present tense is about seeing être in action.
This is valuable because you can improve your understanding of être conjugation in the present tense through examples.
Je suis canadien.
I am Canadian.
Je suis Mme Martin.
I am Miss Martin.
Je suis M Dubois.
I am Mr Dubois.
Tu es jeune.
You are young.
Tu es triste Paul?
Are you sad Paul?
Il est blond.
He is blond.
Il est américain.
He is American.
Nous sommes bibliothécaires.
We are librarians.
Vous êtes belle.
You are beautiful.
Vous êtes heureuse Mme Martin?
Are you happy Miss Martin?
Ils sont pharmaciens.
They are pharmacists.
Quiz Yourself on Avoir Conjugation in the Present Tense
At the end of every lesson you can do a small quiz.
You will see the sentences of the previous chapter. It is up to you to give the correct answer.
You will either need to fill in the blanks, choose the correct multiple choice option, or both.
Once you are done the correct answer will be shown.
You can redo the quiz as many times as you want!
How to Practice With Flashcards for This Lesson
Using flashcards is an absolute necessity when it comes to learning a language!
It is the best way to memorize what you learn, you can personalize your progression because it adapts to your actions, and all flashcards have audio to improve your hearing and pronunciation.
Please read our article on how to learn a new language for more information on flashcards and the best way to learn a new language.
There are two ways to practice with Flashcards for this lesson.
- Anki
- The Flashcards in our Courses
Anki is a free software with which you can create and practice flashcards.
After you have downloaded Anki for free, you can get our French A1 Anki Deck.
This Anki Deck contains 3,764 flashcards with which you can practice absolutely everything for French A1.
All the flashcards have text, images, explanations, and audio.
You can also use our courses that have flashcards integrated alongside lessons with audio, quizzes and much more!
However, I am sure you are wondering, what are your courses, and why should I take them?
The Courses of Language Atlas
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I created free lessons and quizzes so that there would always be a easy and accessible way for people to learn or brush up on their language skills.
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